Prior to constructing a new home or remodeling an existing home, consumers and designers frequently desire to observe kitchen and bathroom fixtures in a functional display in order to aid in their selection. Such a display may appear in a design showroom or a tradeshow, where a consumer is able to turn on a bath tub, shower, sink or bidet, or flush a toilet to observe the fixture in its functioning state. In addition to aiding consumers, such displays may permit fixture manufacturers to display an entire suite of fixtures designed to have a similar appearance in a single setting so that a consumer may observe the entire suit together. For example, a fixture suite may include a toilet (water closet), a bidet, a bath tub or a shower, and a lavatory (sink).
To accommodate changes in consumer taste and market demand, fixture manufacturers must develop new fixture designs. Prior art fixture displays do not presently allow a manufacturer to replace older design or outdated fixtures with new fixtures without performing extensive plumbing or remodeling of existing displays.
Prior art functional bathroom and kitchen fixture displays typically include a single fixture, for example a toilet or a sink, mounted on top of a reservoir for containing water that is passed through the fixture during demonstrations. One problem with these displays is that the supply of water is continually recycled through the display, from the fixture, to the reservoir, and back through the fixture during a multitude of cycles. As the water is continually cycled through the display, it may become contaminated by soil and other contaminants as individuals interacting with the display place their hands in the water. This dirty water diminishes the attractiveness of the display and cause consumers to associate the fixture manufacturer with the dirty water/dirty display, thereby decreasing the likelihood that the consumer will purchase that manufacturer's fixture.
An additional problem in prior art functional displays is that as the water becomes contaminated, these water-recycling displays have no efficient means of disposing of the contaminated water and replacing the water with clean, fresh water. Typically, this means that a display must use the contaminated water for the duration of the display period, until the display can be moved to a location (if the display is even portable) where the water can be siphoned or poured from the reservoir into a suitable water disposal location, which may include a floor drain. In many instances, however, design showrooms or trade shows do not contain easily accessible floor drains, and the cost to install such a drain after a showroom has been completed is frequently prohibitive of such an installation.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for a portable bathroom and kitchen fixture display which permits a continuous supply of clean water to the displayed fixtures, which permits drainage of the display in response to the supply of the water to the display. Also needed is a display which permits display of an entire suite of fixtures, while affording a manufacturer the ability to replace older model fixtures with updated, newer model fixtures.